


Tasteless

by Chromophilic_Daydream



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Angst, M/M, Spoilers, birthday fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-02
Updated: 2017-06-02
Packaged: 2018-11-08 00:22:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,799
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11070144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chromophilic_Daydream/pseuds/Chromophilic_Daydream
Summary: Unspoken words lined with regrets can make the sweetest things taste like nothing.





	Tasteless

**Author's Note:**

> A short Drabble for Goro's Birthday! Please enjoy!

The air was humid in the early summer day. The heat alone wasn't enough to chase away the water that was collecting in the clouds that hung low in the sky as he walked outside, nor were the clouds enough to shield the earth from the clingy warmth that made his clothes weigh down on him. It was too miserable outside, but it was just a short walk to the bakery down the road. It would be worth it the bit of discomfort.

A small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth when he saw the building come into view. The thought had occurred to him a few days ago when he was walking back from school and from that moment on his mind was set on it. He was looking forward to it really, a lot more than he had been expecting, anyway.

A light breeze caught his face as he opened the door, the small air conditioner mounted to the wall hummed loudly and small voices of the workers greeted him. The heat outside really was unbearable. He wondered how just last year he survived that grueling summer with just a fan in the attic of Leblanc. Akira brushed his damp bangs out of his face and looked around at the display of pastries and desserts in front of him. There wasn't too much of a selection but enough for him to be a bit choosy. He really had no idea what to pick. Everything looked delicious. He just needed a cake for two.

His faltering earned him some attention from the girl behind the counter, who smiled politely.

"Did you need help with anything?"

His attention drifted to her. "Ah... maybe." He mumbled, his words getting lost at his lips for a moment. "Which... of your smaller cakes is the most popular?" That seemed like something that would go over well, a recommended staff favorite.

"Hmm." The girl tapped her chin in thought. "Well, right now, we have a layered strawberry cake that's very popular! Strawberries are in season right now! We can hardly keep them in stock." That was enough to convince him.

"Have you sold out for the day?" He asked, letting out a sigh of relief when she nodded in affirmation.

"I think we have a few left!" She motioned to the case and slid the glass door open to pull out the cake to show him. "Lucky! We are usually sold out by this time."

"Yeah, lucky me." Akira said quietly. "I'll take it."

"Thank you very much!" The young woman bowed to him gently. "Is it someone's birthday? Someone special?"

The question blindsided him. Someone special... yeah. Very special. He wanted to tell her but the answer stuck in his throat. He found himself nodding instead.

"Okay! I'll write 'Happy Birthday' on it for them then!"

"T-thank you very much." He swallowed thickly and waited for her to wrap the cake up for him. Someone special indeed. Akira leaned against the counter by the register, allowing his thoughts to wander momentarily. He bet Goro would be surprised, he wondered if he even had a birthday cake before. The detective never told him his birthday, it just never came up in conversation, but it didn't take much digging to find it out. A internet simple search one night a few weeks ago told him the date was June 2nd. Curiosity even got the better of him and he took a look at his zodiac sign, a Gemini. Vaguely he wondered if they were compatible... it was something he never really cared about that kind of stuff until he met Chihaya... He typed in his own birthday to see what his sign was.

That was when Morgana started pestering him about food and he abandoned his search, never bothering to resume it.

Compatible or not, it wouldn't change how he felt. Fate wasn't something that had control over him anyway. There was really no use in knowing that kind of trivial information. What was important was knowing that June 2nd was the date Akechi Goro was born.

Today.

His bangs were still damp in his absent-minded fingers when a voice finally brought him back to earth.

"Sir, here you go." Akira jumped slightly, unsure of just how long he had been leaning at the counter and fumbled with his wallet. He placed the total amount down on the tray in front of him and the worker handed him the cake in a small bag. She bowed to him and smiled.

"I hope they have a great birthday!"

_I do too._

The walk home felt longer than it ever had. His steps felt heavy with anticipation, his head buzzing from the heat. Inside the house was much cooler he noted as he slipped off his shoes. A soft rumbling of thunder was the only sound that greeted him home.

He saw Morgana off in the small living room, by a window sleeping. Probably for the best. He wouldn't get interrupted then. Bag still in hand, he started upstairs to his room.

His room was much smaller than the attic of Leblanc, and almost as bare. A small shelving unit on his wall opposite his bed housed trinkets his friends had given him during his time in Shibuya last year. It felt like such a long time ago, when really it had been just a few months. His phone was littered with messages from them daily, it made him miss Shibuya more and more each day. He was sure they were wondering why he wasn't talking, he just didn't have the energy to deal with them, maybe later, but not right now.

Akira quietly walked over to the small table he had centered in his room and set the bag on top of it. He had already cleaned it in preparation for this. His fingers felt numb as he pulled the cake and forks the girl from the bakery had given him out of the bag. He set the box down on top of the table, carefully opening the top and pulling away the packaging. It really was a delicious looking cake with "Happy Birthday" written across the top with care.

His heart stopped for a second. Maybe more.

Rummaging around in his desk drawer he found a small red candle that had been in there for who knows how long and a small book of matches. He wiggled the candle into the top layer of the white icing and took a deep breath. He would've been surprised, he knew it. He could practically hear him, carefully choosing his words to express his surprise without completely giving away that he never saw it coming.

Something like, "well now, this is unexpected." in a practiced, even tone. But his eyes would be the thing that sold him out. Always a wary, guarded look. Seeking some sort of answer to the situation in front of him, trying to make sense of something so foreign to him as a simple birthday cake actually being for him. It was infuriating. The light that was streaming in just hours ago gave way to rain that was a heavy as the sigh that escaped his lips.

Akira rubbed his neck and walked to his unmade bed, and grabbed a small frame beside it. It was really the only thing he had of Goro's... It hadn't even given to him. He found a picture a few months ago online from an article that had been written about him. He had printed it out and carefully cut it to fit an empty frame his parents never used. The smile he wore was fake. He recognized that smile very well. It was a smile he showed everyone, the mask he wore to fool the world.

Not like Akira could ever find a picture of the real thing. One of the many regrets he had. One of the few things he wished he could see again. But this was the best he had.

Akira placed the framed picture beside the cake and sank down to his knees. Quietly, hands shaking unknowingly, he struck a match and lit the candle. It was the only light in his room now that the rain was pounding at his windows, but he could very clearly see Goro, smiling at him with that fake smile.

His heart sank. This was harder than he thought it would be.

"Hey..." His voice sounded fuzzy and distant. "It's the second of June today, you know..." He swallowed hard and swallowed again. "Your birthday." Akira's eyes met Goro's before quickly darting back down at the wax that was beginning to drip down the candle.

"I looked it up, you never had to tell me. I wanted this to be a surprise anyhow." Rain was pelting down against the house, drowning out Goro's whispered response to him. At least that's what he told himself. His russet eyes definitely widened in genuine disbelief, softening that guarded expression.

"I just kept thinking... you probably never had a proper birthday huh? I wanted to fix that. I wanted to help." His words became more distorted in his ears, like he was choking over them.

Red wax was quickly pooling in the icing as the candle whittled down from the flame, faster than the tears that rolled down his cheeks. "This is the best I can do now. I want us to celebrate this together. There's so much I want to tell you..." He finally managed to say over a very soft sob, daring to glance at the photo once again.

For a moment, just a moment, his smile was there, Goro's smile was just for him and only him. Small, but reassuring. It was enough. Telling Akira that he had done enough. But it didn't feel like he had. He had so much to say, so much to share. But there was no one there to hear, Goro wasn't really there... nothing he could say or do would change that not matter how much he fought fate.

But for now... this would do.

"I miss you, you know. And... happy birthday."

The room fell dark after the candle sizzled out. He sat in that darkness, stubbornly wiping at his eyes. His head was starting to hurt. The words he wanted to speak dried his mouth. Today was suppose to be a happy day, after all. The day the person he failed was born. That person he loved so much.

Quietly, he picked up one of the two forks and cut a small piece of cake. He pressed it into his unwilling mouth and chewed.

It didn't taste like anything at first, then turned bitter on his tongue. The rain didn't seem to want to end that day.


End file.
